


Dodging Bullets

by texasgreen



Category: Chernobyl (TV 2019)
Genre: Drama, I won't tag much I don't want to spoil it lmao, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-12-30
Packaged: 2020-12-07 14:21:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20977325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/texasgreen/pseuds/texasgreen
Summary: The workers of reactor four were all too familiar with Dyatlov's rage, but sometimes it could go too far.(Idk how to note this normally but it'll probably have around 6 chapters)





	1. Chapter 1

**VNIMANIE VNIMANIE:** I just want to clarify that this fic is about the characters in the HBO Chernobyl series, and **not **the real-life people they were based off. I mean no disrespect in any way to the people who actually gave or lost their lives in this horrific event, or their loved ones who survived them. This is purely a dumb little fanfic about the HBO characters.

Pripyat was cold this time of year. Sasha felt a chilly breeze blow through as he made his way towards the plant. The cold made him worry a little over his bony coworker, comrade Toptunov. The damned kid was built like a toothpick, and the chilly weather as of recent had seemed to be taking a toll on him.

_‘He should dress warmer’_ Akimov thought, and the image of his mentee dressed up in a scarf and winter hat made him smile. The smile disappeared, though, as he tried to figure out why that idea made him so happy. He pushed the thought out of his mind and kept walking.

“Ah, comrade Akimov! Good to see you’ve found your way here. And on time, too!” comrade Perevozchenko joked, feigning shock and amazement.

Akimov rolled his eyes. Yes, he’d been late a couple days this week, but it wasn’t his fault! The route he took had the tendency to ice over, making getting to work more difficult this time of year.

“By the way, I heard Dyatlov is going to be observing us today.”

“God help us, then” Akimov replied.

Perevozchenko laughed. “Yeah, one of those days. Poor Toptunov is gonna have a heart attack after yesterday.”

Akimov cringed at the memory. Yesterday, Lenya wasn’t looking where he was going and bumped right into a surly-as-ever Dyatlov. The poor guy nearly got his ear yelled off. Akimov, having worked at reactor four for years now, had seen Dyatlov’s wrath plenty of times, but it still got under his skin, especially when it was aimed at his mentee. He told himself it mostly bothered him because as his mentor, a criticism of Toptunov was an indirect criticism of him, but it got under his skin even more than when he was being directly criticized.. it was strange.  
Akimov and Perevozchenko made their way towards their part of the plant. The others were already inside, chatting with one another at their stations. He walked over to his and Leonid’s station. Still shaken from yesterday’s events, Lenya gave him a sheepish smile.

They started to chat about their days, when a loud shutting of the door interrupted them. It was Dyatlov, looking his usual ornery self. The entire room seemed to lose life and warmth.

_'Ah shit, here we go.'_


	2. Chapter 2

**VNIMANIE VNIMANIE:** I just want to clarify that this fic is about the characters in the HBO Chernobyl series, and **not **the real-life people they were based off. I mean no disrespect in any way to the people who actually gave or lost their lives in this horrific event, or their loved ones who survived them. This is purely a dumb little fanfic about the HBO characters.

_Toptunov POV_

"I have the misfortune of babysitting you _amateurs_ again tonight." Dyatlov started. Leonid shuddered. Having a new job was stressful enough without the manager-from-hell breathing down his neck all the time. "But luckily enough for us all, nothing more is expected of you tonight than to watch the controls, a task I'm sure even _you all_ can handle." Leonid was overjoyed when he'd first gotten this job, overflowing with pride at being considered able to work this position so early in his life, but as the weeks went on, the constant cut-downs from Dyatlov started to get to him. 

It wasn't a huge problem at first, but being so new _and _the youngest at the plant, he was an easy target as the butt of jokes, or scapegoat when someone made a mistake. He knew that his coworkers didn't mean anything by it, but that combined with the constant flow of criticism from Dyatlov always left him in a pit of self-doubt. His mentor, comrade Akimov, always gave him a boost of reassurance, but sometimes even that wasn't enough to mend his quickly depleting confidence. He felt smart enough for this job, especially after his thesis was so well-received, but his nervousness and hesitation from the new job never seemed to leave as the weeks went on. In fact, it seemed to worsen, especially when Dyatlov came in with seemingly no other intention than to increase the room's levels of stress and tension.

"..ov? Toptunov! What the _hell_ are you doing, just standing there like you've eaten glue? Get to work!" Toptunov was startled out of his thoughts, snapping out of them to see the unwelcome sight of none other than Dyatlov's perpetually-glaring face.

"Oh- I mean- sorry sir, I got lost in thou-"

"Like I give a shit! Did you hear anything I just said to you, or were you too busy thinking about what you plan to eat for dinner tonight, or whatever vapid thoughts go on in that stupid head of yours?"

"I apologize, but I-" Dyatlov cut him off again.

  
"Just increase the power output to 1400, will you? Can you at least handle that?"

"Yes, comrade."

Toptunov made his way towards the control panel and carefully brought up the power. Akimov was nearby, watching and making sure the process went smoothly. Just as the power was about to go a bit too high, Sasha caught and held the switch steady.

"Hey, it can be hard to tell where to stop at times, just make sure you don't bring it up too far. Try keeping your eye on the marks near the switch rather than the wattage reading up there." making sure Dyatlov didn't hear. But as he was speaking, his hand twitched, causing the sensitive control to move, and change the power reading by about 100 watts. He quickly moved to correct it, but not before the mistake caught the eye of a certain manager.

"Which on of you_ morons_ just let it go to 1500? This is taking all day, and you can't even get it to the right number, unbelievable."

"I'm sorry, comrade, I must've moved my hand too much" Leonid spoke. Akimov gave him a look of confusion. He reckoned that he'd likely get more leniency as the newer worker, so he decided he'd take the blame for Akimov's mistake. He knew that having more experience than himself, Akimov could handle it, but something in him didn't want to see Akimov face Dyatlov's rage. 

"Of course it was you. Typical." Dyatlov said with even more venom than usual, and something about it chilled him to the bone.

* * *

Leonid was walking back from a restroom break when he came face-to-face with Dyatlov once again.

"Ah, Toptunov. Slacking off again, I see? It never ceases to amaze me how you got any job, let alone this one". He started. Leonid began to defend himself.

  
"Sorry, sir, but I was just-"

Big mistake.  
  
Dyatlov threw himself into a downwards spiral of rage at this. "Oh, so now you're talking back to me? Do you even know who I am? I can make sure you never work anywhere else! I can ensure your career is over for good!" He continued to rant and rave on, and Toptunov began to back away, as Dyatlov advanced in anger. As Dyatlov continued ranting, Leonid raised his hand defensively, which Dyatlov saw as a personal affront, and snapped. In a split second, he knocked his hand out of the way and punched him in the throat. Toptunov, completely unprepared for the attack, fell to the ground as kicks and punches kept making their way to his head and neck. 

Distantly, another engineer heard some scuffling and absentmindedly wondered what was happening.

After what felt like an eternity, Leonid felt the attacks stop. By then, the world was spinning, and his vision grew spotty. He thought he heard someone calling his name, but it felt like his head was underwater and he drifted off.

* * *

  
Sasha hadn't seen his mentee for a while now. He'd went on a restroom break a while ago, but a considerable amount of time had passed and the young engineer still hadn't returned. He went to go look for him.

He wasn't far into his search when he heard what sounded like a fight going on around the corner. Confused, he peeked around and saw the unbelievable. There was Lenya on the ground, as Dyatlov kicked him. His blood ran cold.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" He threw Dyatlov off Leonid and checked the unconscious man's pulse. _O__h, thank God_ he thought, as although it was thready, it was at least present. Dyatlov began to snap out of his blind rage.

"You.. How could you do this? What is wrong with you?" Sasha said, desperately trying to maintain composure through his anger. "I'll.. I'll make sure you go to jail for this, you fucking beast!"

Dyatlov stood quietly there for a moment, assessing the situation, then a smug grin dawned on his face, and he spoke.

"No, you won't. I know something about you that'll make sure of that. You think I haven't seen those looks you've been giving Toptunov all these weeks? Along with that, I saw those homosexual magazines in your drawer. I know the truth about you, and the only reason I haven't exposed it to the KGB is you haven't yet outlived your usefulness to me as an employee. If you value your job and your life I'd recommend you keep it that way."

_Fuck,_ Akimov thought. He'd hoped that part of him was left in the past. He threw out the magazines months ago, hoping that he'd thrown his impulses out with them. Did he really feel that way towards Lenya, though? He didn't want to believe it.. but it explained his feelings of attachment and fondness he had for him in the past several weeks.

Wait.. what was he thinking? Lenya was before him unconscious, now was not the time!

"Unless you want yourself and your little mentee put in a labor camp, I'd recommend reporting this as an industrial accident. Oh, and here's something to help with that." Dyatlov knocked over a shelf of maintenance tools, and a loud clatter echoed through the room. He narrowed his eyes. "Remember what I said.. _homosexual__._"

* * *

TBC. I know this isn't the best written, and I'll probably edit it quite a bit tomorrow. I'm fairly new to fanfiction writing, but I hope y'all enjoyed regardless. Also! I noticed this little niche of ao3 is pretty tight-knit, so I made a discord server if any of y'all are interested in joining! Moderator positions are open as I don't think I have the time to moderate it on my own, but if it sounds like your kind of thing, feel free to join here: https://discord.gg/QtS9gnx


	3. Chapter 3

**VNIMANIE VNIMANIE:** I just want to clarify that this fic is about the characters in the HBO Chernobyl series, and **not **the real-life people they were based off. I mean no disrespect in any way to the people who actually gave or lost their lives in this horrific event, or their loved ones who survived them. This is purely a dumb little fanfic about the HBO characters.

Leonid slipped in and out of consciousness every few minutes for what felt like several hours. He felt the cold floor on his cheek, and saw Sasha's desperation-addled face shouting (or maybe whispering?) something mere inches above his own. He smelled nothing.. but tasted the metallic taste of blood, the vile, pungent liquid almost choking him. Breathing became more difficult by the second. Somewhere in the distance, he heard sirens wailing. For some reason, it felt familiar. Then, for a moment, he saw nothing. He shook the emptiness and quiet away, and briefly heard Sasha's voice. He said something about tools..

He woke up to the sterile air of a hospital room. Dizzied by the pain, he had difficulty focusing on any one thought or feeling. Breathing was easier than he remembered, maybe from the plastic tube he felt in his throat, maybe from the waning fog of painkillers.

He thought he heard the voice of someone, a doctor. She must've increased the painkiller dosage, as he slowly came to being able to see and think again. He tried to thank her, but nothing seemed to come out, and despite the medicine, any attempt at vocalization was excruciating.

Now able to think and understand more clearly, he started to listen more closely. He was unprepared for what he heard.

* * *

Akimov knew he looked stupid, but he couldn't stop biting his knuckle and bouncing his heel nervously as he waited for news on Leonid's state.

It had felt like an eternity before a woman came into the waiting room and ushered him to Leonid's room. Leonid's family had yet to arrive, so it was just the two of them (and an uninterested nurse, standing by the door). 

"Leonid! I'm so glad you're alright, how are you feeling?"

He was overwhelmed with relief as he saw his mentee sitting up, conscious, but that changed quickly to worry and confusion when he saw the expression on his face.

He looked lost and confused, like there was something he needed to do or say, but he didn't know how. 

He seemed to struggle for a bit, frantically looking for something. What he found was the napkin underneath his plastic cup of water, and a pen.

_I can't talk. They don't know if I ever will again._

Tears threatened to fall as he wrote this, and Sasha froze. He didn't know how to react. Was it all a joke? Should he ask the doctors if there was anything else that could be done, or yell at them, or cry, or...? He settled with holding his hand. He didn't cared if the nurse saw, all he could think about was the man before him. 

His blood ran cold as he remembered who was responsible. He wanted to report Dyatlov, or scream at him, he wanted to _kill_ him; but he knew that doing anything would result in him (and maybe even Lenya) being arrested and sent away. It was painful, having this anger boiling inside him, but not being able to do anything. But that anger melted down when he heard a quiet cry from his mentee. His heart ached at the thought of how painful and lonely it must be, him knowing he may never be able to speak again. He held his hand a little tighter. What he wouldn't've given to have been able to kiss him right then and there, to hold him and tell him that it'll be okay.

But he couldn't. All he could do is sit there as the man he cared so deeply for cried, and wish it was all just a bad dream.

* * *

The next day, when Leonid saw him, he immediately scribbled something on a piece of paper. Sasha picked it up and read it.

_Maybe we should have a better way to communicate. This means hello._

When he looked up, Leonid did a motion with his hands. Sasha recognized it as USL. He picked up some sign in highschool from a deaf janitor, but knew no more than a few basic phrases and the alphabet. 

_My name is L-e-n-y-a._, he signed. 

He wrote down the meaning.

Your_ name is S-a-s-h-a._

He knew they were probably just used to be short and simple, but the use of their diminutive names made him a blush slightly. 

Lenya was practicing other signs without writing them down, unaware that Sasha was understanding bits and pieces of his signing. He was doing basic introductions, yes/no questions, and even small statements about his life. Though he didn't understand too much of it, Sasha couldn't help but smile at how quickly he was making progress, reminding him of how much of a fast learner he was back at the power plant. 

At the same time as Sasha signed_, I understand you,_ Lenya made a simple motion that meant, _I love you._

Lenya's face paled in realization. Time seemed to stop for the both of them, and Sasha had never seen Lenya so afraid. Forgetting how to properly sign it, he frantically tried to fingerspell, _I'm sorry, it was an acciden-_

Sasha cut him off by responding,

_I love you too._

* * *

Well this is becoming a major bruh moment. By the way, as I said last chapter, I've made a discord server for our little corner of the community, so feel free to join anytime here: https://discord.gg/mZXDBQF

We don't bite!


	4. Chapter 4

**VNIMANIE VNIMANIE:** I just want to clarify that this fic is about the characters in the HBO Chernobyl series, and  **not ** the real-life people they were based off. I mean no disrespect in any way to the people who actually gave or lost their lives in this horrific event, or their loved ones who survived them. This is purely a dumb little fanfic about the HBO characters.

Sasha spent every hour he could with Leonid the next several days, spending his time in-between shifts sneaking homemade food into the hospital and sharing it with him, to give him a much-needed break from the blandness and sterility of the hospital meals. During these times, Leonid would teach him more and more signs he’d picked up from reading while alone. They kept a notebook between them where Leonid would write down the words for signs he didn’t know yet, and they’d both write down signs they needed to memorize. 

He got to meet Leonid’s family at one point, who came to visit as soon as they’d heard what happened. They were good people, although Sasha worried a bit about if they’d be understanding if the truth about him and Leonid got out. 

After four days of this, Leonid was cleared to go home. This made it much easier for them to see each-other. Thanks to the nocturnal lifestyle they’d grown used to working the night shift, during off-days they could go out together and act like a normal couple without too much fear of being found out, since most of the city was asleep in those hours.   
  
But the question still remained as to what would happen when his medical leave expired. Although everyone on the night shift knew something had happened, Sasha hadn’t been able to tell them the full extent of Leonid’s condition. It was going to be difficult to work anywhere without the ability to speak, let alone a nuclear reactor. A couple days into this new normal, Leonid couldn’t take it anymore and vented his frustrations to Akimov.

_ It’s just.. so unfair. I’ve worked my whole life for this position and now, just as I finally got it, it’s taken away from me with no..  _ he thought for a second, trying to remember the sign.

_ ..no repercussions! Dyatlov still has position as manager, and it’s like there’s nothing we can do about it. _

Akimov understood. He’d never had this feeling before, being this angry with someone in power and being unable to do anything. Hell, he still sometimes felt the urge to kill the guy.

_ Then you’d be in jail and we’d both be out of a job, _ Lenya jokingly signed. Only then Sasha realized he’d said the last part aloud. He laughed for a second, but it quickly died when he remembered that he’d never get to hear Leonid’s laugh again. He could see it in his face though, and even without noise it still made his heart flutter. He decided, he’d find a way to make sure Leonid could work at the plant again.

* * *

  
The next day, Akimov started opening up to the other workers about Leonid’s situation. They were all eager to know how he was doing, and despite the teasing he’d gotten around the plant back when we worked with them, they all really liked and respected him. They all seemed open to the idea of learning sign, and some even promised to visit when they got the chance. All except Dyatlov, who upon hearing of it from another worker, laughed bitterly.

  
“What, are we going to spend weeks learning learning some fucking gestures over  _ him? _ Just because that clumsy idiot went and got himself crippled doesn’t mean we have to set ourselves back for his sake. Besides, he barely-” Akimov tried to punch him, only to be stopped by Stolyarchuk. Dyatlov just sneered as Stolyarchuk took him to the side.

Once they were out of earshot, Boris started “Listen, I’d love to see Dyatlov punched in the face as much as anyone,  _ especially  _ after what he just said, but the last thing we need is you getting fired.”

  
“What, are we just supposed to let him say that kind of shit?” Sasha’s blood was still boiling from the comments.

  
“No. We pursue legal action.”   
  
“What do you mean?”   
  
“I’ve wanted to tell you this all week, but now’s the perfect time. I saw what happened.”


	5. Chapter 5

**VNIMANIE VNIMANIE:** I just want to clarify that this fic is about the characters in the HBO Chernobyl series, and **not **the real-life people they were based off. I mean no disrespect in any way to the people who actually gave or lost their lives in this horrific event, or their loved ones who survived them. This is purely a dumb little fanfic about the HBO characters.

Boris agreed to meet up with the two of them in a nearby cafe to discuss their next move.

The sun was going down, and Stolyarchuk and Akimov were preparing for their next shift. Boris arrived first, and ordered for himself. A couple minutes later Sasha opened the door, Leonid walking nervously beside him. Boris gestured for them to come over and they obliged, Leonid waving slightly and offering a shy smile. Boris hadn’t seen Leonid since then, and was glad to see him seemingly in good health. The petite man had some apparent bruising on the neck and upper arm, so Stolyarchuk was careful not to hurt him as he went in for a hug.  
  
“Leonid! It’s good to see you, friend.”

_ Can you understand me? _Leonid signed, a slightly nervous expression on his face.  
  
“He can’t quite yet.. sorry.” Akimov explained. “But I’d be happy to translate!”  
  
Leonid tried to hide his disappointment. Not with Boris, of course, but more with the situation itself. He greatly appreciated Sasha translating for him, and always helping him when he needed it, but deep down he hated that he had to rely on him so much. He’d always taken his independence for granted, and now it was gone.

“Since I’m a third-party witness, I’m planning on filing a report to the IAEA, but I wanted to go over it with you two.”

_ Boris, of course I appreciate it, but don't you realize how dangerous that is? _

After Sasha translated for a Stolyarchuk, he sighed.

“Of course. Dyatlov is our superior, and he’s well-connected… but we can’t just let this go on. You’re my friend and he hurt you. I can’t just let that go. Besides, if we let this slide, think of how many other people he could hurt! He’s.. unstable, and keeping him in power is a risk to everyone.” 

They looked over the report. Sasha and Leonid added details, since Boris only showed up around the end. The further they got into reliving it the paler Leonid looked, and he began to tremble slightly. This tore at Sasha inside, and he wanted more than anything to put his hand on Lenya’s, but they were in public. He settled for putting a hand on his shoulder. The report covered the event to a tee, up until the end. As the final moments played out, Akimov remembered Dyatlov’s threat. He was nervous, wondering how much Stolyarchuk heard. The report didn’t include anything about what Dyatlov said, but…

After they were done, Sasha stopped Boris, and asked, “How much.. exactly... did you hear towards the end?”  
  
“Sasha, is this about being gay? Comrade, I already knew. Besides, do you really think something like that would turn me against you? What kind of friend would I be?”

  
This, he hadn't expected. "O-oh.. thank you."

Sasha felt a warmth grow in his chest. This would be hard, but he and Leonid would not go this alone.


End file.
